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Research & Development

Continuous innovation and validation

Our commitment is to work with the leading individuals and companies in our areas of expertise to continuously develop and improve our products - delivering technology that meet needs of the future.

In the early 1970’s, research in the nuclear field was adapted to the demands of flow assurance in the oil industry - OLGA was conceived at the Institute for Energy Technology (IFE) in cooperation with the Two-Phase Flow Laboratory at SINTEF. In 1993, we were awarded the privilege of commercialising and maintaining the product. Since then, we have championed numerous R&D projects to ensure continued development and innovation around OLGA.

In the OLGA Verification and Improvement Project (OVIP), we have, in conjunction with the oil industry, collected the world’s largest database of lab and field data. This data has been used to validate and adapt the multiphase flow models. OVIP data is continuously used to improve the core of our technology to even better match the realities of operations.

Based on more than 15 years of drilling research from Rogaland Research in conjunction with major oil companies, Drillbench provides a combination of steady-state and transient models verified extensively against actual data and proven through field implementation. SPT Group is continuously updating Drillbench in combination with our OLGA technology to provide state-of–the-art solutions for drilling challenges.

Our steady-state technology was originally developed in 1968 based on research at the University of Calgary. At the request of industry, PIPEFLO, WELLFLO and FORGAS became available for commercial use shortly thereafter. Since then, we have taken full advantage of our expertise in single and multiphase flow and continued their development to remain the steady-state software of choice for many of the leading oil, gas, service, and consulting companies.

Conceptual developments and research on MEPO started at the Technical University of Braunschweig, Germany, in the early 1990s. SPT Group secured its rights in 1999 and developed the technology for use in reservoir simulation through establishing a link with Eclipse. The technology was developed for commercial use through a Joint Industry Project (JIP) with ENI, Hydro, Statoil, and Total, started in 2001. The first commercial version of MEPO was released in 2004. SPT Group continues research and validation to ensure cutting edge results and expand the capabilities of the solution.

 


 

Other initiatives

  • ROCX - Modelling the dynamic wellbore interaction to increase the quality of inflow regimes in OLGA
  • The FACE project (Multiphase Flow Assurance Innovation Centre), at IFE in Norway
  • The Tulsa University Fluid Flow Projects (TUFFP)
  • Center for Hydrate Research at the Colorado School of Mines

 


 

The Institute for Energy Technology (IFE)

OLGA was initially conceived and developed by Dr. Dag Malnes and Dr. Kjell Bendiksen at the Institute for Energy Technology (IFE) in Kjeller in 1979-1980. Dr. Bendiksen wrote the first version of the code, which was named OLGA, in May 1980. IFE has had, through the history of OLGA development, an independent experimental role in providing data for modelling of special flow phenomena. IFE has a three-phase flow laboratory where important experimental data used in OLGA models have been collected.

SPT Group (then Scandpower) was tasked with the commercialization of OLGA in 1993, and obtained the full intellectual property rights to the product in 2005. IFE remains one of our closest and most important partners - ensuring that OLGA is based on state-of-the-art research and development.

 

 

 

 

Major R&D projects

Improve CO2 functionality in OLGA.

Industry participants: 
Chiyoda - Inpex - Petrobras - Petronas - Shell - Statoil

CO2VIP (OLGA)

 

 

Verify and improve the accuracy of the flow model using actual field data

Industry participants:
BG Group - BP - ExxonMobil - Petronas - Repsol - SaudiAramco - Statoil - Total - Woodside

OVIP (OLGA)

 

 

Address problems related to the cost-effective development and safe operation of long distance gas-condensate transport and long distance transport of oil well-streams.

Industry participants:
Chevron - ConocoPhillips - ENI - ExxonMobil - Statoil - Shell

Horizon (OLGA)

SPT Group Horizon Project OLGA

 

 

Develop enhanced optimisation techniques and workflows in MEPO that apply to production optimisation and field management.

Industry participants:
BG Group - Dong Energy - ENI - Total